Compare Translations for Isaiah 51:23

Isaiah 51:23 (ASV)and I will put it into the hand of them that afflict thee, that have said to thy soul, Bow down, that we may go over; and thou hast laid thy back as the ground, and as the street, to them that go over.

Isaiah 51:23 (BBE)And I will put it into the hand of your cruel masters, and of those whose yoke has been hard on you; who have said to your soul, Down on your face! so that we may go over you: and you have given your backs like the earth, even like the street, for them to go over.

Isaiah 51:23 (DBY)and I will put it into the hand of them that afflict thee; who have said to thy soul, Bow down, that we may go over; and thou hast laid thy body as the ground, and as the street to them that went over.

Isaiah 51:23 (ESV)and I will put it into the hand of your tormentors, who have said to you, 'Bow down, that we may pass over'; and you have made your back like the ground and like the street for them to pass over."

Isaiah 51:23 (GW)I will put it in the hands of those who made you suffer. They said to you, "Lie down so that we can walk over you." So you made your back like the ground and like a street for them to cross.

Isaiah 51:23 (HNV)and I will put it into the hand of those who afflict you, who have said to your soul, Bow down, that we may go over; and you have laid your back as the ground, and as the street, to those who go over.

Isaiah 51:23 (JUB)But I will put it into the hand of those that afflict thee, which have said to thy soul, Bow down, that we may go over: and thou hast laid thy body as the ground and as the street to those that went over.

Isaiah 51:23 (KJV)But I will put it into the hand of them that afflict thee; which have said to thy soul, Bow down, that we may go over: and thou hast laid thy body as the ground, and as the street, to them that went over.

Isaiah 51:23 (KJVA)But I will put it into the hand of them that afflict thee; which have said to thy soul, Bow down , that we may go over : and thou hast laid thy body as the ground, and as the street, to them that went over .

Isaiah 51:23 (LEB)And I will put it in the hand of your tormenters, who have said to {you}, 'Bow down that we may {pass} over [you]!' And you have {made} your back like the ground, and like the street for those who {pass} over [you]."

Isaiah 51:23 (MSG)I've passed it over to your abusers to drink, those who ordered you, 'Down on the ground so we can walk all over you!' And you had to do it. Flat on the ground, you were the dirt under their feet."

Isaiah 51:23 (NAS)"I will put it into the hand of your tormentors, Who have said to you, 'Lie down that we may walk over you.' You have even made your back like the ground And like the street for those who walk over it."

Isaiah 51:23 (NCV)I will now give that cup of punishment to those who gave you pain, who told you, 'Bow down so we can walk over you.' They made your back like dirt for them to walk on; you were like a street for them to travel on."

Isaiah 51:23 (NIRV)Instead, I will give it to those who made you suffer. They said to you, 'Fall down flat on the ground. Then we can walk all over you.' And that is exactly what you did. You made your back like a street to be walked on."

Isaiah 51:23 (NKJV)But I will put it into the hand of those who afflict you, Who have said to you, 'Lie down, that we may walk over you.' And you have laid your body like the ground, And as the street, for those who walk over."

Isaiah 51:23 (NRS)And I will put it into the hand of your tormentors, who have said to you, "Bow down, that we may walk on you"; and you have made your back like the ground and like the street for them to walk on.

Isaiah 51:23 (NRSA)And I will put it into the hand of your tormentors, who have said to you, "Bow down, that we may walk on you"; and you have made your back like the ground and like the street for them to walk on.

Yeshayah 51:23 (OJB)But I will put it into the yad of them that torment thee; which have said to thy nefesh, Bow down, that we may walk over; and thou hast laid thy gev (back) like the ground and like the street, to them that walked over.

Isaiah 51:23 (RHE)And I will put it in the hand of them that have oppressed thee, and have said to thy soul: Bow down, that we may go over: and thou hast laid thy body as the ground, and as a way to them that went over.

Isaiah 51:23 (RSV)and I will put it into the hand of your tormentors, who have said to you, 'Bow down, that we may pass over'; and you have made your back like the ground and like the street for them to pass over."

Isaiah 51:23 (RSVA)and I will put it into the hand of your tormentors, who have said to you, 'Bow down, that we may pass over'; and you have made your back like the ground and like the street for them to pass over."

Isaiah 51:23 (TMB)But I will put it into the hand of them that afflict thee, who have said to thy soul, `Bow down, that we may go over.' And thou hast laid thy body as the ground, and as the street to them that went over."

Isaiah 51:23 (TMBA)But I will put it into the hand of them that afflict thee, who have said to thy soul, `Bow down, that we may go over.' And thou hast laid thy body as the ground, and as the street to them that went over."

Isaiah 51:23 (WBT)But I will put it into the hand of them that afflict thee; who have said to thy soul, Prostrate thyself, that we may go over: and thou hast laid thy body as the ground, and as the street, to them that went over.

Isaiah 51:23 (WEB)and I will put it into the hand of those who afflict you, who have said to your soul, Bow down, that we may go over; and you have laid your back as the ground, and as the street, to those who go over.

Isaiah 51:23 (WYC)And I shall set it in the hand of them that made thee low, and said to thy soul, Be thou bowed, that we pass; and thou hast set thy body as (the) earth, and as a way to them that go forth. (And I shall put it in the hand of them who made thee low, and who said to thee, Be thou bowed down, so that we can trample upon thee; and thou hast made thy body like the ground, and a way for them to go upon.)

Isaiah 51:23 (YLT)And I have put it into the hand of those afflicting thee, Who have said to thy soul, Bow down, and we pass over, And thou makest as the earth thy body, And as the street to those passing by!'

Commentaries For Isaiah 51

Exhortations to trust the Messiah. (1-3) The power of God, and the weakness of man. (4-8) Christ defends his people. (9-16) Their afflictions and deliverances. (17-23)

Verses 1-3 It is good for those privileged by the new birth, to consider that they were shapen in sin. This should cause low thoughts of ourselves, and high thoughts of Divine grace. It is the greatest comfort to be made serviceable to the glory of God. The more holiness men have, and the more good they do, the more gladness they have. Let us seriously reflect upon our guilt. To do so will tend to keep the heart humble, and the conscience awake and tender. They make Christ more precious to the soul, and give strength to our attempts and prayers for others.

Verses 4-8 The gospel of Christ shall be preached and published. How shall we escape if we neglect it? There is no salvation without righteousness. The soul shall, as to this world, vanish like smoke, and the body be thrown by like a worn-out garment. But those whose happiness is in Christ's righteousness and salvation, will have the comfort of it when time and days shall be no more. Clouds darken the sun, but do not stop its course. The believer will enjoy his portion, while revilers of Christ are in darkness

Verses 9-16 The people whom Christ has redeemed with his blood, as well as by his power, will obtain joyful deliverance from every enemy. He that designs such joy for us at last, will he not work such deliverance in the mean time, as our cases require? In this world of changes, it is a short step from joy to sorrow, but in that world, sorrow shall never come in view. They prayed for the display of God's power; he answers them with consolations of his grace. Did we dread to sin against God, we should not fear the frowns of men. Happy is the man that fears God always. And Christ's church shall enjoy security by the power and providence of the Almighty.

Verses 17-23 God calls upon his people to mind the things that belong to their everlasting peace. Jerusalem had provoked God, and was made to taste the bitter fruits. Those who should have been her comforters, were their own tormentors. They have no patience by which to keep possesion of their own souls, nor any confidence in God's promise, by which to keep possession of its comfort. Thou art drunken, not as formerly, with the intoxicating cup of Babylon's idolatries, but with the cup of affliction. Know, then, the cause of God's people may for a time seem as lost, but God will protect it, by convincing the conscience, or confounding the projects, of those that strive against it. The oppressors required souls to be subjected to them, that every man should believe and worship as they would have them. But all they could gain by violence was, that people were brought to outward hypocritical conformity, for consciences cannot be forced.

Isaiah 51:1-23 . ENCOURAGEMENT TO THE FAITHFUL REMNANT OF ISRAEL TO TRUST IN GOD FOR DELIVERANCE, BOTH FROM THEIR LONG BABYLONIAN EXILE, AND FROM THEIR PRESENT DISPERSION.

1. me--the God of your fathers. ye . . . follow after righteousness--the godly portion of the nation; Isaiah 51:7 shows this ( Proverbs 15:9 , 1 Timothy 6:11 ). "Ye follow righteousness," seek it therefore from Me, who "bring it near," and that a righteousness "not about to be abolished" ( Isaiah 51:6Isaiah 51:7 ); look to Abraham, your father ( Isaiah 51:2 ), as a sample of how righteousness before Me is to be obtained; I, the same God who blessed him, will bless you at last ( Isaiah 51:3 ); therefore trust in Me, and fear not man's opposition ( Isaiah 51:7Isaiah 51:8Isaiah 51:12Isaiah 51:13 ). The mistake of the Jews, heretofore, has been, not in that they "followed after righteousness," but in that they followed it "by the works of the law," instead of "by faith," as Abraham did ( Romans 9:31Romans 9:32 , Romans 10:3Romans 10:4 , 4:2-5 ). hole of . . . pit--The idea is not, as it is often quoted, the inculcation of humility, by reminding men of the fallen state from which they have been taken, but that as Abraham, the quarry, as it were (compare Isaiah 48:1 ), whence their nation was hewn, had been called out of a strange land to the inheritance of Canaan, and blessed by God, the same God is able to deliver and restore them also (compare Matthew 3:9 ).

2. alone--translate, "I called him when he was but one" ( Ezekiel 33:24 ). The argument is: the same God who had so blessed "one" individual, as to become a mighty nation ( Genesis 12:1 , 22:7 ), can also increase and bless the small remnant of Israel, both that left in the Babylonish captivity, and that left in the present and latter days ( Zechariah 14:2 ); "the residue" ( Isaiah 13:8Isaiah 13:9 ).

4. my people--the Jews. This reading is better than that of GESENIUS: "O peoples . . . nations," namely, the Gentiles. The Jews are called on to hear and rejoice in the extension of the true religion to the nations; for, at the first preaching of the Gospel, as in the final age to come, it was from Jerusalem that the gospel law was, and is, to go forth ( Isaiah 2:3 ). law . . . judgment--the gospel dispensation and institutions ( Isaiah 42:1 , "judgment"). make . . . to rest--establish firmly; found. light, &c.--( Isaiah 42:6 ).

6. ( Isaiah 40:6Isaiah 40:8 , Psalms 102:26 , Hebrews 1:11Hebrews 1:12 ). vanish away--literally, "shall be torn asunder," as a garment [MAURER]; which accords with the context. in like manner--But GESENIUS, "Like a gnat"; like the smallest and vilest insect. JEROME translates, as English Version, and infers that "in like manner" as man, the heavens (that is, the sky) and earth are not to be annihilated, but changed for the better ( Isaiah 65:17 ). righteousness--My faithfully fulfilled promise Job 4:18-20 ). Not that the moth eats men up, but they shall be destroyed by as insignificant instrumentality as the moth that eats a garment.

11. ( Isaiah 35:10 ). Therefore--assurance of faith; or else the answer of Jehovah corresponding to their prayer. As surely as God redeemed Israel out of Egypt, He shall redeem them from Babylon, both the literal in the age following, and mystical in the last ages ( Revelation 18:20Revelation 18:21 ). There shall be a second exodus ( Isaiah 11:11-16 , Isaiah 27:12Isaiah 27:13 ). singing--image from the custom of singing on a journey when a caravan is passing along the extended plains in the East. everlasting joy--( Jude 1:24 ). sorrow . . . flee away--( Revelation 21:4 ).

14. captive exile--literally, one bowed down as a captive ( Isaiah 10:4 ) [MAURER]. The scene is primarily Babylon, and the time near the close of the captivity. Secondarily, and antitypically, the mystical Babylon, the last enemy of Israel and the Church, in which they have long suffered, but from which they are to be gloriously delivered. pit--such as were many of the ancient dungeons (compare Jeremiah 38:6Jeremiah 38:11Jeremiah 38:13 , Genesis 37:20 ). nor . . . bread . . . fail--( Isaiah 33:16 , Jeremiah 37:21 ).

15. divided . . . sea--the Red Sea. The same Hebrew word as "make to rest" ( Isaiah 51:4 ). Rather, "that terrify the sea," that is, restrain it by My rebuke, "when its waves roar" [GESENIUS]. The Hebrew favors MAURER, "that terrify the sea so that the waves roar." The sense favors GESENIUS ( Jeremiah 5:22 , 31:35 ), or English Version ( Isaiah 51:9Isaiah 51:10 , which favors the special reference to the exodus from Egypt).

16. Addressed to Israel, embodied in "the servant of Jehovah" ( Isaiah 42:1 ), Messiah, its ideal and representative Head, through whom the elect remnant is to be restored. put my words in thy mouth--true of Israel, the depository of true religion, but fully realized only in Israel's Head and antitype, Messiah ( Isaiah 49:2 , Isaiah 50:4Isaiah 50:5 , 59:21 , Deuteronomy 18:18 , John 3:34 ). covered . . . in . . . shadow of . . . hand--protected thee plant--rather, "fix" as a tabernacle; so it ought to be rendered ( Daniel 11:45 ). The "new creation," now going on in the spiritual world by the Gospel ( Ephesians 2:10 ), and hereafter to be extended to the visible world, is meant ( Isaiah 65:17 , 66:22 ; compare Isaiah 13:132 Peter 3:10-13 ). Zion--Its restoration is a leading part in the new creation to come ( Isaiah 65:17Isaiah 65:19 ).

18. Following up the image in Isaiah 51:17 , intoxicated and confused by the cup of God's anger, she has none to guide her in her helpless state; she has not yet awakened out of the sleep caused by that draught. This cannot apply to the Babylonish captivity; for in it they had Ezekiel and Daniel, Ezra and Nehemiah, as "guides," and soon awoke out of that sleep; but it applies to the Jews now, and will be still more applicable in their coming oppression by Antichrist.

19. two--classes of evils, for he enumerates four, namely, desolation and destruction to the land and state; famine and the sword to the people. who shall be sorry for thee--so as to give thee effectual relief: as the parallel clause, "By whom shall I comfort thee?" shows ( Lamentations 2:11-13 ).

20. head of all . . . streets--( Lamentations 2:19 , 4:1 ). wild bull--rather, "oryx" [JEROME], or gazelle [GESENIUS], or wild goat [BOCHART]; commonly in the East taken in a net, of a wide sweep, into which the beasts were hunted together. The streets of cities in the East often have gates, which are closed at night; a person wishing to escape would be stopped by them and caught, as a wild animal in a net.